Counterbalanced pivoted closure



Patented Nov. 9, 1948 [TED S TAT ES PATENT OFF ICE GOUNTERBA'LANCEDPIVOTED CLOSURE Henry Walden, New York, N. Y. Application December 14,1944, SerialNo. 568,129

, 1 Claim". 1

This invention relates. to containers, and more particularly to those ofa type intended for use by dentists, physicians, artists and many'othersfor holding, drugs, medicines, paints and materials of similar nature topermit such materials to be easily extracted as needed, from thecontainer.

Dentists and physicians, for example, are required to use drugs andother liquid preparations while treating patients, and. most of these:drugs andzother preparations are contained in stoppered bottles" or.vials which are unhandy to open; which require immediate corki-ng orstoppering after use to prevent evaporation of the contents. Theseoperations aren'ot often" easily and adeptly performed, particularlywhile the patient is bein treated".v Artists also are often required touse quick-drying inks and paints which are contained in bottlesrequiring immediate corking after each use, with the result thatconsiderable time is wasted in those bottle-opening and closingoperations. Very often the worker will forget to cork the bottle of amaterial of highl evaporative nature with the resultant loss of itscontents.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a containerparticularly useful for the purposes above mentioned, which can be veryeasily opened and closed with one handed opera tion; which will greatlyfacilitate access to the contents of such containers, and which willkeep the contents protected and thus clean and sanitary. A container ofthis character may be made in various designs to suit difierentrequirements and when made for medical or dental purposes, it can bedesigned to present a sanitary aspect as well as to perform functionsrendering it of valuable use to the physician or dentist.

In the accompanying drawing, wherein an illutrative embodiment of theinvention is shown, Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a containerconstructed according to the invention; Fig. 2 is -a vertical sectionalview through the container,,.with the cover in open position, and Fig. 3is'a top plan view, on a reduced scale, of the container.

The container is provided with a suitable flat base member I ofsufiicient area topermit the cover of the container to be freely openedand closed in the manner hereafter described without causing tipping orupsetting. Rising from the base I, and preferabl molded integrallytherewith, is the body 2 of the containen'the same being of tubular formand having an open top 3 through which access to the interior of thebody portion 2 is had.

The base I and body portion 2 preferably I formed integral-1y therewith,as well as most, if

notall of the other" parts of the device, may be made from any suitablemolded material such as one of th'e'many plastics now on the market. The

body 2*0'! the container'is adapted to rem'ovably" hold within it, areceptacle 6, which can be of glass or other suitable material and ithas an open w of relatively knife-edge form as indicated at E, the'topedge portion tapering inwardly as at 1' to'fornr said edge: The edge of"the character' described, formed at the top of the receptacle 6,provides a wiping edge against which brushes, instruments or tools ofvarious kinds re ceiving the contents of the receptacle may betouched orwipedt'o remove excess material, the material thus removed flowing" backinto the receptacle. portion of the" receptacle 6 is slightly elevatedabove the top of the body 2 of the container so that the excess materialwiped oil, or removed in the manner explained will drain down into thecontainer, or if any should reach the outside of the receptacle, it willdrain down into the con tainer 2 rather than on the outside of the same.

Near its top edge, the container bod 2 is provided with an annularshoulder 4 and also with an angular seating surface 5, these surfaces 4and 5 providing a seat for the cover l2. Said cover is in the form of acup-like member, interiorly hollowed at l9 to fit snugly on top of thecontainer body 2, The surfaces l3 and M on the cover, seat against thoseindicated at 4 and 5 on the container body 2 so that when the cover isin closed position, as indicated in Figs. 1 and 3, a tight and secureclosure is provided for the top of the body 2 as well as for the opentop of the receptacle 6, without actual contact with the top of thereceptacle 6.

The container body 2 has a rearward extension 9, which can be moldedintegrally with the base I and with the body 2, and at its upper end itis provided with a clevis portion I!) in which a lug l5, integrallyprojecting from an arm II on the cover, is pivotally mounted by means ofthe pivot pin IS. The arm H is formed integrally with the cover I2 andextends rearwardly therefrom to terminate in a handle portion l1 soshaped and disposed that it requires but a relatively light touch of thefinger to cause the cover to be raised and to remain in the openposition shown in Figv 2. This result may be secured in several ways,such as by weighting the handle part, by locating the pivot point at thep oper p i y so shaping the parts that the desired balance is attainedand by which the cover will rise to operi It will also be observed thatthe top position by a ver light touch of the finger and remain open.Thus, in the use of the device, it is very easy for the dentist,physician, artist or other user, to cause the contents of the receptacleto be made instantly available to his instruments or brush, by lightlytouching th handle part i! to cause the cover to raise and remain inopen position, as shown in Fig. 2. Similarly, the cover can be closed bylightly touching the end whereat the cup-shaped part is located, causingit to instantly swing downwardly into closed position. To prevent thepossibility of the container tip ping during the opening and closingoperations of the cover, the base I may be made relatively large andmay, if necessary, be formed with a rearward extension as indicated atl8.

It will be apparent that I have provided a container which can be usedfor a great many purposes; which will keep its contents protected and ina sanitary condition; which can be opened and closed speedily to notonlyiacilitate the Work of the user, but to prevent evaporation of thecontents of the receptacle. It will be obvious that many variations maybe made without departing from the spirit of the invention. For example,the shape of the body 2 may be materially changed to suit the receptaclewhich it is intended to accommodate. A number of these containers may begrouped or joined together to form a multipleunit, and various otherchanges can be readily made aswill be apparent to those skilled in thisart. It will be observed that the receptacle 6 is spaced from the innersurfaces of the body 2' as-well as from the interior of the covermember. The result is that an air space is provided around thereceptacle which, when the same is used for containing powderedmaterial, acts to prevent part of the powdered contents from being dis-4 persed by suction and scattered about when the cover is suddenlyraised.

Having described the invention, what I claim is:

Acontainer of the character described having a body portion providedwith a well open at the top, a receptacle of less external diameter thanthe well fitting within the well and spaced therefrom, said receptaclehaving an open top projecting above the top of the body portion wherebyexcess contents" removed from .the receptacle by an instrument may bewiped ofi on said projecting part of the receptacle, a hinged coverproraised position when said arm is lightly touched by the finger.

HENRY. W. WALDEN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Germany Sept. 1922

